Last month, Royal Dutch Shell (The Hague, the Netherlands; www.shell.com) released a report1 that assesses the company’s alignment with 19 industry associations on climate-related policy. In the report, Shell CEO Ben van Beurden states “The need for urgent action in…
Many indicators point to current success and prosperity for U.S. petroleum refineries, but simultaneously, the industry is facing a future of massive changes in energy and transportation By many measures, the U.S. petroleum-refining industry is succeeding and prospering. According to…
Processes involving extremely low temperatures present unique process design and safety challenges. This one-page reference outlines considerations for low-temperature operations. Direct contact Extremely low temperatures can rapidly freeze human tissue. Contact between a worker’s bare skin and a low-temperature vapor,…
Armed with a proper understanding of chemical exposure risks and available safety solutions, engineers can be confident in selecting the best personal protective equipment to provide reliable barriers to workplace hazards There is a tendency to think about personal protective…
Recent advances in gas-monitoring technologies can greatly increase worker connectivity and safety With increased automation, expanding areas of operation and smaller teams of field workers, monitoring personnel and ensuring lone worker safety are serious challenges for the chemical process industries…
Determining the field performance of centrifugal compressors can benefit operation and maintenance of the equipment. Presented here is an overview of the parameters that must be measured and calculated for effective testing Compressors are used in all areas of production…
The following recently published titles are relevant to various parts of the chemical process industries (CPI). Fluid Mechanics of Control Valves: How Valves Control Your Process. By Hans D. Baumann, International Society of Automation (ISA), 2019, 125 pages, $99.00. A…
With an eye toward a circular economy, technology developers are advancing a host of new approaches to chemical recycling of post-use commodity plastics Plastics are indispensable parts of almost every sector of the economy, with wide-ranging economic, environmental and convenience…
A unified gateway station and related components increase availability to improve operations and safety In information technology (IT) security circles, the most important acronym is CIA: confidentiality, integrity, availability. In industrial control security, the corresponding acronym is AIC: availability, integrity,…
A safety instrumented system (SIS) is important to ensure the safe operation of a plant. The SIS requires up-to-date sensors — recent developments in vortex flowmeters are presented here There are four key areas of concern for chemical producers that…